CMS Women's Swim and Dive Just 10 Points Down after First Day of Pomona-Pitzer Dual

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Augusta Lewis (200 IM) and Ella Blake (500 free) nearly matched their SCIAC-winning times from two seasons ago as the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's swimming and diving team finds itself in a tight battle with Pomona-Pitzer after day one of the two-day meet, trailing just 60-50.

Lewis swam a 2:02.80 to win the 200 IM by just over four seconds, and was just off her program record time of 2:02.41, which she set at the SCIAC Championships. Kelly Prawira added a 2:08.62 to finish fourth, just outside of the CMS top 10. 

Blake, meanwhile, swam a 5:00.40 in the 500 free, winning a tight race with Naomi Locala of Pomona-Pitzer by pulling away in the final two laps, as Locala touched the wall in 5:03.32. Blake swam a 5:00.22 to win the SCIAC Championship in 2020, which places third in CMS history. Leila El Masri came in third place as well with a 5:07.34. 

Emma Ng Pack earned another individual title in diving, taking the one-meter by less than one point over Ruby Epstein, 295.15 to 294.30. Ng Pack has earned the SCIAC Diver of the Week honor all three times she has competed, and her tight win gives her a solid chance at a fourth if she can duplicate it with a three-meter win tomorrow. 

The 400 medley relay team of Jameson Mitchum, Lewis, Katelyn Dang and Natalia Orbach-Mandel started out the day with a second-place finish, but moved into seventh place in CMS history with a time of 3:48.41. Ava Sealander had a close battle in the 50 free as well, coming in a close second to Avery Turney of Pomona-Pitzer 23.51 to 23.89, which was not far off their top time of 23.46, which ranks second in CMS history.

The two teams were virtually deadlocked heading into the final event of the day, but Pomona-Pitzer was able to push its lead up to 10 by earning first and third in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Blake, Dang, Sealander and Orbach-Mandel finished in 1:35.55, nearly coming back but ending up just behind the winning time of 1:34.89 from the Sagehens. 

CMS came into the meet ranked No. 11 in the country, with Pomona-Pitzer just ahead at No. 8, and the two teams showed after the first day that not much separates them, making every race tomorrow potentially a key factor in the dual win. Diving starts the day at 10:30 a.m., with the swimming events taking place at 12 noon.